Following are a few ideas for discussion regarding the 2004 points system. We had a variety of race formats and driver/team combinations that appeared in 2003 that got me think'n (dangerous, yes) about improvements for our series in 2004.

1. Enduro's vs. Sprints - should they really carry the same points? I vote that enduros carry a 2.5 to 3x points premium. Lets face it, enduro races are expensive to run (tires, brakes, motor wear, etc). There are a couple enduro's on the '04 GTS schedule and we should encourage everyone to run them. Added points may be just the ticket. Each enduro weekend is typically accompanied by 2 sprint races (ala BeaveRun). Unfortunately most just run the sprints and pack it up. I feel enduro should be the focus of the weekend and the sprints should just be a way of getting some extra points if you managed to conserve the equipment. I was at first leery about running a 3hr event but man what a blast. The enduro really makes you focus on race strategy.

2. Points for co-drives? There will be cases where a racer may choose to co-drive for an enduro to offset some of the cost and to lessen the wear and tear on the driver. Why not, your buddy is fast and has cash and a set of Hoosiers he'll donate to the cause. There is time during the pit stop for driver changes and between the spouses and friends there are enough bodies to form a pit crew. I'd like to advocate that the drivers can either a) split the points awarded for their finishing position as they choose (50/50, 70/30, etc) or b) assign all of the points to a selected driver. The points assignment must be done prior to the race.

3. About mid-season 2003 a change to the points system was made where by an additional point was awarded for each mark of car, other than your own, in your class, that finished behind you. Neat idea, but what a PIA to keep track of. I vote we do away with this and keep it simple - stick with a structured points based on finishing position. The manufactures points race will keep tabs on all the mark wars.

4. We should promote a couple races each year to get everyone out. Gingerman '03, for example, had a good size GTS field with our own run group (the way it should be). BMWCCA runs premier events which are worth a couple extra drivers points. This helps to focus on a couple events per year - basically forcing the less dedicated to run those events. These should be quasi-regional events. For example we could have one premier event out West (like Putnam or Gingerman) and the other out East (VIR or Summit Point) so that everyone gets an equal shot a "big" race. This might be too complicated for a new series with scattered attendance but it could help draw bigger fields. Of course all premier events shall be scheduled to conflict with PCA races ;)

5. The driver/mfgs points used to be charted per race and accumulated on the GTS website. This was very cool and allowed quick and easy check for accuracy (I'm assuming that like most club events, each GTS racer is responsible for the accuracy of his/her race results). I'd like to see the tabulated points chart back on the web along with the driver's points rules._________________Sean Tillinghast
#001 GTS3 '95 ///M3